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On Thursday, the government said it would temporarily close the Koidula and Luhamaa border crossing points in south Estonia overnight later this month following Russia's "irrational" behavior.

The move is Estonia's response to several border incidents caused by the Russian side last year.

"One incident took place on the Vasknarva pier, where Russian officials crossed our state border. Before that, there was a notable incident in the Saatse Boot area, which required us to take various actions," Minister of the Interior Igor Taro (Eesti 200) told evening news show "Aktuaalne kaamera" on Saturday.

Starting February 24, both checkpoints will close at 7 p.m. and reopen at 7 a.m. the following morning for three months. Taro said the decision will allow the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) to allocate more personnel to border surveillance.

"This is not about saving money in an Excel spreadsheet. We are working to strengthen border surveillance and enhance border security," the minister said.

The PPA's Peter Maran said: "Since traffic volume is low, people who need to travel to or from Russia will still be able to cross the border. The service is not disappearing."

The nighttime closure of the Koidula and Luhamaa checkpoints will most directly affect coach companies. For example, Lux Express' Tallinn to St. Petersburg route passes through the Luhamaa crossing point.

"If the checkpoint is closed at night, we will not be able to operate those specific departures. Therefore, as of February 24, we will cancel the evening departures that cross the Luhamaa checkpoint. Approximately 300 passengers will be affected, and we will contact them," said Lux Express Group CEO Ingmar Roos.

Freight transport has already been largely restricted by sanctions.

Railservis, a company providing waiting area services at the Koidula crossing, said if the number of vehicles drops further, it will face financial difficulties.

"If it is closed at night, will only five vehicles cross the border instead of eight or 10? We are constantly on the edge. At some point, we may simply terminate the contract and say sorry, we cannot do anything. We do not have the means to pay our employees," said Aleksei Mürisep, board member of Railservis OÜ.

Estonia's decision has been coordinated with Latvia.

"We have coordinated with them to ensure that if we reduce the bottleneck on our side, they won't increase capacity at their checkpoints, so that Russia cannot avoid feeling the impact of our action," said interior minister Taro.

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Editor: Helen Wright, Marko Tooming

Source: Aktuaalne kaamera

LIVELihtsad uudised 6. veebruarillisten: radio tallinnLIVEwatch: jupiterLIVEAbout usERR News is the English-language service of Estonian Public Broadcasting, run by a fully independent editorial team.To read up on ERR News' comments rules and to contact ERR's other services, please follow the link below.Staff, contacts & comments

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